If you have good parents, live in a nice neighborhood, and go to well-off schools you shouldn’t have any problems. Right?The opposite, of course, is true as teens living in elevated socioeconomic areas are destroying their lives at higher rates than ever before. Our next blogger was one such teen. These are his shoes… 9.2.18

Path2Empathy has had the privilege of learning and seeing the importance of clean water from 7th-grade student Tariku Savage and his mom, Amy. They have inspired their school and community to combat our world's water crisis by building wells in Africa. These are their shoes. 7.27.18

It's one thing to study a culture, it's another to go and embrace what it is. With great faith, MD Deysher left her home to live in Malawi, Africa to help children and those seeking medical attention. She has never been trained in the medical field but went to support and offer friendship to those in need. These are her shoes. 6.30.18

Schools are out for summer! But what will you do with your kids over the break? Take some advice from parent/teacher Edi Pettegrew to encourage an empathy building summer. 5.28.18

The best stories of empathy are often because people go back to a place of fear or pain in order to help others. Mandy Cooke is no exception. Take a walk in her shoes as a teacher and Columbine survivor. 4.19.18

The best advice a parent can get can be from those who daily walk in the shoes of our teenagers. In a time where we are looking for answers to the social trauma teens face, here is a perspective from speaker, author, and teen expert, Mike Donahue. 04.02.2018

On a random night, Amy Savage found common ground, respect, and unexpected admiration for an unlikely friend. Read her powerful empathy encounter. 02.28.18

Author, mother, PhD, and champion for kindness, Tara Cousineau, has given meaningful connection between empathy and kindness. Read the excerpt from her new book in this addition of Our Shoes. 01.30.18

Bob Clifton has reflected on 2017 and found a valuable lesson in empathy when looking at his own shoes. 12.29.17

These beautiful feet know no bounds. Meredith's path is one of courage and adventure. Take a walk in her shoes, we will "see you at the finish line." 11.28.17

We don't have to go far from home to experience the healing power of empathy...these are Heather's (and her grandma's) shoes. 11.1.17

Tips for showing empathy for those you may not relate to in our latest Our Shoes Blog. 9.24.17

No better way to start the school year than by walking in the shoes of a student. Here is Ty's perspective on being a 6th grader and how words matter. 7.31.17

As a young girl Ann Doolan-Fox had a dream of living in the US. This is her Path2Citizenship. 6.30.17

True beauty comes with its own difficult path. These are recoding artist/model Katie Jae's shoes. 5.25.17

Put your children's feet in another's shoes through the power of books, by Nora Earnest. 4.24.17

Empathy isn't easy. Take a real walk in the shoes of this sister holding on to hope and love. 3.20.17

Empathy is needed everywhere...even at the highest level in sports. Go for a run in the shoes of collegiate athletic trainer Mark Peters. 2.12.17

History is made by people like Courtney A. Metzger. His daughter, Claire, honors him in P2E's latest blog. 1.17.17

Jennicca Mabe's thoughts on empathy and forgiveness. 12.23.16

Loving an animal can be a journey. These are Jared Montoya's shoes. 11.30.16

Amy Sienkowski's Inspiring Journey on her Path2Empathy. These are her shoes 2.3.16

Angie Dawson's powerful Path2Empathy. These are her shoes... 1.4.16

Carrie Block's Shoes & Her Path2Empathy 12.10.15

An Invitation for Empathy & Jennicca Mabes's Path2Empathy 11.22.15

For our launch post on the Path2Empathy blog I want to lay a foundation of what you will find here. First, we are real people. The P2E crew is group of women who like to have fun, explore, and push the limits in and out of our schools. We are wives and mothers, we are educators and adventures. We have traveled abroad and been stay-at-home-moms. We care about the future and want to see the simplicity of the ancient practice of empathy in our homes and schools.

Second, you will find imperfection. In a book I recently read, “The Gifts of Imperfection” by Brene Brown, she encourages the reader to embrace not only the imperfection in themselves, but those around them. Isn’t that refreshing? The idea of embracing something imperfect in order to appreciate it for what it really is. No mask, no attempt to portray something we aren’t, no pressure to perform or be judged, just the the truth. The truth in this blog may be considering another's point of view, a misplaced comma, or wrong verb tense (because I’m not very good with grammar). Embracing the truth in someone else is the only way to really walk in their shoes. By not stressing over the imperfections in others, I am convinced we will discover the relational beauty, clarification, and adventure we are looking for.

Speaking of imperfect, my own Path2Empathy can be summed up with that one word. Not only do I find imperfections the glaring theme in my story, I can see the imperfections of Jennicca Mabe as the backbone to who, where, and what I embrace today. There was never a definitive moment when I chose the Path2Empathy, yet a combination of events both beautiful and tragic encouraged me to find it and start walking on it. Like many of you, my story is laced with humanity, but with grace from those around me and my faith, I’ve experienced love, hope, healing, and growth.

On this path I have undoubtedly hurt people and been hurt. This is why empathy is so important, because we have all made mistakes and want the grace and forgiveness of those we have wounded. Walking in someone else’s shoes takes courage and maturity and the ability to lay down bitterness no matter how much we have been hurt. By looking at the world through another perspective we find not only the joy of seeing our world grow, but a missing piece to healing. I want to walk in your shoes and invite you to walk in mine. This is the Path2Empathy...join me.